1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to sports and exhibition facilities, and in particular to a facility which can be converted between stadium and arena configurations for accommodating different sports and other activities.
2. Description of the Related Art
Spectator sports comprise a major form of entertainment worldwide. Although live broadcast media coverage is available for many events, spectator attendance continues to be a major revenue source for team franchises. Professional sporting event venues range in size from arenas which are typically used for sports such as basketball, hockey and soccer to stadiums which can accommodate professional football.
Municipalities and geographic regions are under considerable pressure to provide appropriate state-of-the-art facilities for staging sporting and other events, such as concerts, exhibitions, conventions, trade shows and the like. Movement of sports franchises among different markets is commonplace. Sports franchise owners often take advantage of the marketability and portability of their respective teams to solicit proposals from competing venues. Thus, sports and exhibition facilities are continuously being upgraded and replaced in order to remain competitive with other available venues.
State-of-the-art sports and exhibition facilities typically represent major capital expenditures. Hence, there is a significant advantage to providing a multi-purpose facility which can be utilized in several sports seasons and which can also accommodate conventions, exhibitions and the like.
Multi-purpose sports and exhibition facilities have been proposed before. The Labinski U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,383 for Reconfigurable Seating System for Multi-Purpose Stadium is incorporated herein by reference and discloses a stadium which is convertible between baseball and football configurations. The Miyagawa Japanese Patent No. 406200644 discloses a seating area layout variable system of multi-purpose arena, with the ability to convert between baseball and soccer configurations.
Facilities have previously been designed with moveable seating sections and vertically adjustable playing fields and roofs. For example, a soccer facility has been proposed with a playing surface adapted for being raised hydraulically to a roof level. The facility also includes a longitudinally moveable seating stand for altering the playing area size. The Geiger et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,103,600 also discloses a multi-purpose stadium with a roof structure which can be raised and lowered and with seating which can be reconfigured.
Generally speaking, spectator sports are best enjoyed in facilities which are specially configured for a particular sport or sports. Factors such as total capacity, sight lines, private suite/open seating mix ratios and proximity to the game play can either enhance or detract from the spectator experience. For example, sports such as football are generally played in large stadiums with optimal seating capacities in the range of about 65,000 to 70,000. Sports such as basketball and hockey, on the other hand, are generally played in smaller venues with the spectators seated closer to the court or rink. Thus, a convertible facility would preferably provide the experience associated with single-purpose stadiums and arenas with optimal seating capacities, sight lines and spectator proximity. Still further, a convertible facility would preferably include a ceiling which can be raised or lowered to accommodate the size and scale of the seating bowl with which it was associated.
Heretofore there has not been available a convertible sports and exhibition facility with the advantages and features of the present invention.